Over Christmas our family travelled to South Africa so that the children could finally meet their cousins, the rest of the family and explore the beautiful country of South Africa. Towards the end of our holiday we visited the Spier wine estate which is situated just outside of Cape Town in the winelands of Stellenbosch with its unique Cheetah outreach sanctuary.
For a price the children were able to not only look at Cheetahs from close but also to meet a fully grown Cheetah and pat it. I chose to wait on the other side of the fence while the ladies were more adventurous. The experience certainly left Mary and the children with a humble respect for these beautiful and elegant cats.
According to Wikipedia the cheetah is the fastest land animal in the world and can reach speeds of between 112 and 120 km/h in short bursts. Cheetahs have the ability to accelerate from 0 to over 100 km/h in three seconds. Just think about it, a cheetah can accelerate faster than most expensive sports cars.
Our guide pointed out that Cheetahs actually prefer to hunt at dawn and dusk and prefer to ambush their prey or sneak up to within springing distance. However, when it comes to catching its prey a cheetah depends entirely on speed; knocking over the running animal by hooking a leg, or by simply knocking the animal over. The point I am getting to is that while a cheetah is a fast starter it lacks stamina and gets tired very quickly. Actually a Cheetah can at best maintain top speed for about 500 meters at a time.
The description sounds like many Christians I know, myself included. Many of our churches are full of good meaning Christians who have started out well, but quickly get tired along the journey. For most of my ministry I was cheetah-like; a fast starter with lots of energy. I thought that charisma and passion alone would be enough to overcome all obstacles and help equip and train members to become full-grown disciples for Christ. The older I get the more I have come to understand that these things only carry you so far before the stamina needed for ministry and personal spiritual growth run dry.
An older and more experienced pastor once told me that the journey of the Christ-follower has been compared to a marathon rather than a sprint – and I believe that the same comparison applies to all who serve in ministry – from an active layman to a full time pastor. Paul actually reminds us to: “... run with perseverance the race marked out for us” (Hebrews 12:1).
I have found that in the long run, stamina, perseverance and faithfulness produce more effective ministry than high-energy ministry that can’t be maintained for long. So, remember when it comes to serving Christ and building His kingdom we have a lot to learn from the animal kingdom. Don’t be a cheetah!
How does one learn to pace oneself to be effective on the long journey of the Christian life? I believe the perseverance needed comes through a daily commitment to the Word of God and prayer. Only by spending quality time with Christ can we build up the stamina and endurance needed to finish the race. He is the source of our strength and our only hope to provide the power needed to serve Him with effectiveness day in and day out (John 15:5).
DIG DEEPER:
Think about your own life for a few moments. How are you approaching your journey with Christ? Are you more like a sprinter or a marathon runner? What decisions or actions can you make to make sure that you will have enough strength to keep the journey going over the course of your life?